Berlin - East Germany's last communist leader, Egon Krenz, jailed in August for his role in the killing of fugitives fleeing to the West, was released from custody yesterday. "I want to thank all my friends who helped me. But I want to speak to my wife first," Krenz told journalists as he left Berlin's Moabit prison.
Krenz's lawyer, Mr Robert Unger, said earlier that a Berlin court had ordered him released pending an appeal court ruling into the case, expected early next year. The appeal court could confirm the six-and-a-half year sentence handed down last month, lower or even raise it.
Krenz (60), who succeeded the hardline communist leader Erich Honecker in October 1989, must report to police or judicial authorities once a week and hand in his passport and identity card.